<p>Our son received his financial aid package from PSU today--if you want to call it that!</p>
<p>They are "giving" him a $5,500 unsubsidized Stafford loan.</p>
<p>That leaves approximately another $22,000 to pay. We have enough in his 529 account to cover his tuition for this year. And probably can cover the rest without loans for this year.</p>
<p>The question is, if we decided to take out a loan for this year, what is the best option?</p>
<p>And I don't even want to think about what next year will look like.</p>
<p>
Yes you do. PSU will no give more FA in next year, unless you become poor. So how you going to pay $66000 in next three years.</p>
<p>I was just kidding about the next 3 years. I know that PSU isn’t going to give any more aid. This is where it STINKS to live in PA–our state schools are just too expensive compared to in-state tuition in many other states. Although for his major (Industrial Engineering), we didn’t find any other schools (in or out of state) that would have been significantly cheaper.</p>
<p>Can he do the first two years for less money at one of the branch campuses or a community college? Or is this figure already taking that into account?</p>
<p>That is the racket that PSU runs–the branch campuses are just as expensive as University Park. Only savings would be living at home if that is an option. And I don’t want that for him.</p>
<p>Bottom line is that we will figure it out, just wondering what the different loan options look like. Sounds like I have some research to do.</p>
<p>OP, it’s a tough go, I know. Your options are to apply for the Direct Parent Loan (PLUS) that you can get if you are not 60-90 or more late on any payments according to your credit report. It is not income driven and is more forgiving of not so great credit histories. You can apply in the privacy of your home online and an answer comes up right away, You do need your FAFSA PIN I believe. You can borrow up to the total COA of the school, the money goes to your kids school account on a semester (or however the school runs) basis split into those increments, AND very importantly the interest starts accruing the moment the money is dispensed at about 8%, I believe. You have 10 years to pay it back, and there is some flexibility in options. If you or the student dies, the loan is forgiven. Only one parent has to apply. If one doesn’t qualify, the other can try. If either parent is turned down, your student can borrow an additional from the Stafford loans at an interest rate a percentage point lower. </p>
<p>Since your son was only entitled to an Unsubsidized Stafford loan, with a portion of it not subsidized, that means your family EFC exceeds the COA for Penn State, so he would not likely have gotten any financial aid from any school. PSU is not acting out of line here. Your family does not qualify for financial aid at that cost bracket, and for schools that cost more, the aid would still have almost certainly have worked out so that the least you would still have had to pay would be what the PSU costs are. </p>
<p>PSU does not meet need for those who have it for the most part, by the way, making it a true hardship for those with low EFCs as many in that category will only get federal funds. But they did not treat you poorly. You would have gotten the same aid package at any state school in the country.</p>
<p>
S Dakota School of Mines is $10K less expensive/year.
[Tuition</a> and Fees](<a href=“http://www.sdsmt.edu/Admissions/Tuition-and-Fees/]Tuition”>Tuition and Fees)</p>
<p>U Wisconsin Platteville is $6K less/year
[Admission</a> - 2012-2013 Academic Year Costs](<a href=“http://www.uwplatt.edu/admission/cost_chart.html]Admission”>http://www.uwplatt.edu/admission/cost_chart.html)</p>
<p>I think the OP is all set for PSU at this point in time. As for loans to pay for it, the PLUS have the easy, quick advantage plus the life insurance built into them and flexible repayment terms but the interest rates are high. What else you can find depends on your personal situation and your credit. Do you belong to a credit union? Do you have a HELOC? Can you borrow from your pension? What does your bank have to offer? Make sure you check out all of the terms. Most will not have a life insurance aspect to them, and the outside bank loans for college tend to bind you and the student by the ankles in that aspect with the loans on both credit reports and outstanding as long as either of you are around, and can go after each of you for repayment.</p>
<p>Happymomof1 - yep, we did. And I am closely studying that for our current sophomore in an attempt to sway his schools of choice (Biomedical Engineering).</p>
<p>Erin’s Dad - thanks for listing those, but transportation costs would definitely eat into the savings.</p>
<p>The other thing we have to factor into the school choice is the post graduation job placement. And PSU Engineering beats most schools, especially if he wants to stay in PA.</p>